Dark Green Windows, White Trim, White Clapboards, and Wood Shingles

Photo by Salt Water New England

There is a uniform for classic New England summer houses.  These houses are non-winterized. They combine dark green paint, (on windows or shutters), wood shingles and white trim.  And sometimes they have wings (or other attached structures) in white clapboards. Lilacs are almost mandatory.

These structures go by the same name as, but give a completely different feel than, the ever more common and newer year-round, large and vaguely-contemporary looking second houses, replete with central air-conditioning, black windows, and modern cable deck railing.